Journal 14

If I were in Lieutenant Cross' army I would probably carry not as many things as the other men did. Because I am skinnier than an average man I probably would not be able to carry as much stuff physically, but emotionally I would probably carry just as much if not more. I would probably carry with me a picture of my family to remind myself who I am here for and that I am fighting to protect their freedom. I would also have a few pictures of my good friends, again just to remind myself. Then I would have with me some sort of powder to mix with water, kind of like the kool-aid that they had in the story, and I would carry a lot of water with me. Mosquito repellent is a must for me because I get huge welts when I get bit. I would definitely have some sort of smaller weapon in my pack as well as a rifle/machine gun with ammunition. I thought it was interesting that the supply helicopter came every night, that way it was probably much easier because you could carry less stuff with you and know that you can just "re-load" for the next mission. I would carry a change of clothing in case something happened to my uniform. I thought it was interesting that they carried a Vietnamese-English dictionary and I would also carry one of those with me, because I'm sure it would come in handy. I would have some food with me too, nothing huge because of limited space, but probably some of the stuff they have where you mix it with water and it turns into food. Of course I would always carry the ones closest to me and would think about them all the time just like Jimmy did.